Amongst all people a primary source of pain and/or discomfort originates from skeletal problems. Particularly in the neck and back regions of a person's body. Skeletal problems of this type can effect people who do manual labor and those whose jobs simply require them to sit at a desk for the majority of their time. Even individuals who take precautions to avoid neck and back problems can be afflicted because of the aging process. Serious injury to the back or neck can even occur from a minor accident. once such an injury has occurred or a person begins to experience discomfort or pain, it is highly unlikely that the pain will just "go away".
Most of the time, an injured individual will have to seek some type of professional help, such as from a chiropractor. It is not at all uncommon for people to see a chiropractor on a regular basis even though no obvious injury has occurred. Because chiropractors are relatively expensive other people will rely on a massage. A massage generally provides a good "temporary fix" but rarely can it alleviate a problem permanently.
A severe neck and back pain will cause a person to have great difficulty functioning if they just leave their problem alone to fix itself. This is why it is obviously necessary to provide a means by which an average person, with no specialized training, can administer some type of relief for skeletal problems. A device that would allow an individual to remedy a skeletal mis-alignment would be beneficial for the individual user as well as the medical community. By being able to treat themselves at home, patients would not need to use valuable time that a doctor could be dedicating to more serious problems.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention, however the following U.S. patents are considered related:
______________________________________ Pat. No. INVENTOR ISSUED ______________________________________ 5,575,295 Khalsa et al 19 November 1996 5,528,783 Kunz et al 25 June 1996 5,387,186 Edland 16 July 1995 ______________________________________
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,295 patent discloses a method and apparatus for restoring spinal cervical curvature. A patient will lie on his back on a surface with his neck at the C3/C6 vertebra positioned in a groove formed in the top of a block supported in an upright position on the surface. The width of the groove is greater than the width of the patient's neck, and the thickness of the block's top surface is generally in the range of 1/2 inch to 3 inches. The patient remains in this position for several minutes and the treatment is repeated preferably three times a day for a period of several months.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,528,783 patent discloses a device for the positioning and support of the head or the head and torso of a person in a spine or reclined position. This device consists of a wedge-shaped inflatable air bladder, a source of pressurized air, and air hose and valves for the controlled inflation and deflation of the air bladder. There is also a sheet of resilient material extending forward from the base of the air bladder, upon which the user's weight is superimposed during use. The air bladder may be fully inflated, partially inflated or fully deflated as desired by the user, to incline the head or the head and torso, depending upon the size of the air bladder, of the user to the desired position.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,387,166 patent discloses a traction apparatus for treating vertebral problems, which comprises a tripod-type self-standing support having a block and tackle unit suspended from the tripod apex. The lower block includes a T-bar upon which triangular cushions are supported for location under the knees of a supine patient, and a torso encircling belt includes a strap passing through the patient's legs that if adjustable attachable to the lower block. The block and tackle tension member includes a tail passing from the upper block to the patient, thus permitting the patient to raise and lower the leg supporting cushions to adjust the degree of back tension being achieved. A lock mechanism mounted on the upper block permits automatic positioning of the degree of leg lift.
For background purposes and as indicative of the art to which the invention is related reference may be made to the remaining cited patents.
______________________________________ Pat. No. INVENTOR ISSUED ______________________________________ 5,362,682 Kornberg 6 November 1994 5,378,045 Siekman et al 3 January 1995 5,485,856 Buckland 23 January 1996 5,496,239 Kallman et al 5 March 1996 ______________________________________